APP OF THE DAY: Color Splash for iPad

It's Friday and, truth be told, it's hard to get enthusiastic about an App of the Day when the weekend is breathing its hot, sticky sweet breath on the back of your neck, whispering promises of tantalising delights in your ear, and beckoning you like the Ghost of all of the Christmases put together.

Oh, the things we'd do for a lie-in and half a glass of London Stout.

Therefore, a long, complicated application is a real no, no. It's about as welcome at this time as a visit by a Waterboard engineer telling you that your supply needs to be shut down for the next 2 days.

That's why this particular nugget is pure genius...

Color Splash for iPad

Having already been a hit on the iPhone, Color Splash is nothing particularly new. However, it is such a perfect fit for the iPad that this new version is a worthy entry for Pocket-lint's App of the Day.

It's mind-bogglingly simple, but its end products don't look it. You see, it takes a picture, photograph, whatever, and allows you to colourise one section while the rest remains black and white. It's a photographic technique that has been knocking around for years, but has never been so easy to emulate.

As soon as you import a pic (from the iPad's libraries) into the software, it turns grey. Then, using just your finger, you can restore the colour wherever you touch. That's it.

It's mind-bogglingly simple, but its end products don't look it. You see, it takes a picture, photograph, whatever, and allows you to colourise one section while the rest remains black and white. It's a photographic technique that has been knocking around for years, but has never been so easy to emulate.

As soon as you import a pic (from the iPad's libraries) into the software, it turns grey. Then, using just your finger, you can restore the colour wherever you touch. That's it.

The clever part is that the size of the brush remains constant, no matter how much you zoom into the shot - which you can do to the nth degree - so you can use the same finger for very fine edging.

A tutorial video even accompanies the app, so that you can learn how to use it in a flash, especially as it's not too complicated to begin with.

There's not much more to it, but if you want to create interesting art or photo results, Color Splash is definitely a cannon you should add to your arsenal.

The clever part is that the size of the brush remains constant, no matter how much you zoom into the shot - which you can do to the nth degree - so you can use the same finger for very fine edging.

A tutorial video even accompanies the app, so that you can learn how to use it in a flash, especially as it's not too complicated to begin with.

There's not much more to it, but if you want to create interesting art or photo results, Color Splash is definitely a cannon you should add to your arsenal.

Our senior ed of news and features has been a tech and games journalist for more than 27 years, and has been with Pocket-lint for over five. Rik has edited a number of videogame magazines in the past, was deputy editor of Home Cinema Choice, and his TV career included stints as co-presenter of Channel 4's Gamesmaster and Sky One’s Games World.